That Stupid Bracelet
by Mind's Eye View
Summary: Post Chess Games. It was all that stupid bracelet's fault. If it wasn't for that ARM, he wouldn't be a girl, and he definitely wouldn't be falling in love with Nanashi. Nanashi x Alviss.


She found the ARM in one of the many piles in the vaults of Caldia's castle. It had caught her eye the moment she walked into the room—waiting patiently for her at the top of one of the largest piles with a shaft of sunlight illuminating it like a spotlight. She liked to think that it wanted to be chosen, that it knew it was the only ARM special enough to be given to her darling Ginta as a celebration present.

The ARM was pretty, she thought, which was the real reason she picked it. That, and it was the easiest to get without risking literal tons of ARM falling on top of her if she searched through the piles. It looked like a regular bracelet, albeit an expensive one. It was woven out of two chains, one so light a silver that it nearly looked white, and the other a deep, rich gold. It was gorgeous, it was a physical token of her love, and it was perfect, if only for one thing; she had no idea what it did.

The witch had tried every command she could think of, and even some non-sense magical words that popped into her head. She had tried coaxing it to work with other ARM, had threatened it by warning she would melt it into coins and toss them in one of Caldia's many fountains, and as a last resort, begged it, pleaded with it to work. But through all it, the ARM just shone brilliantly from its place on her wrist, taunting her.

Which was why she needed Alviss.

Dorothy assumed the experienced warrior would be in his room in Lestava castle, no doubt polishing his collection of ARM. Team MAR had been offered their own extravagant suites, as part of their reward for defeating the chess, and only a few turned down the gift. Alviss had been one of them. The young man had declined, but to keep from offending the King, he grudgingly accepted one of the smaller rooms, reserved for tutors and advisers.

And she was right. The youth was sitting on his bed, a grime colored rag in one hand and a container of polish in his lap. He glanced up as she burst through the door, noticed the mischievous glint in her eye, and returned to cleaning his 13 Totem Pole.

"Good morning, Alviss! Nice day, isn't it?" Dorothy smiled brightly at the teenager and plopped down beside him.

"What do you want?" Alviss asked, not bothering to look up at her. The pink-haired woman 'tsked' under her breath and crossed her arms in a huff.

"What? I can't visit my friends? I just wanted to drop by and say 'hi', but if you're going to be rude..." she trailed off and did her best to look as innocently outraged as possible. Alviss watched her out of the corner of his eye, just able to keep his lips from betraying him with a smile.

"I'm sorry, Dorothy. That was very rude of me." he breathed his apology, knowing fully well she hadn't meant a word she said. He wasn't what she considered a friend or acquaintance (if anything, she saw people in only two categories: those who were Ginta, and those who weren't), but he figured whatever she wanted, it had to do with Ginta. And he owed the boy far too much to ignore the witch.

Dorothy nodded, a pleased smirk dominating her face as she stuck her hand out in front of his face. Alviss blinked rapidly but managed to prevent himself from flinching.

"Do you like my new bracelet?"

Alviss raised and eyebrow at her but humored the woman and gave the jewelry a quick once-over.

"It's an ARM." he replied blankly, earning another broad smile from the witch.

"Well, well, still at the top of your game, aren't you?" she fingered the ARM lightly, her expression soft as she stared at the glinting metal, "It's for Ginta. I want him to have something to remember me by."

"He won't be able to take it with him. The Gate Keeper Clown only lets people back with the things they came to MAR Heaven with." "_If he and Boss can get back at all,_" Alviss added silently. Dorothy sighed at his comment and slid the object around her wrist, toying with it.

"I know. But... I just want to give him something. Even if he can't take it with him. It's the thought that counts, right?" she looked at Alviss and smiled wistfully, looking so tender and hopeful that Alviss was left speechless for a few moments.

"He'll like it. If it's from you, he'll like it." he nodded curtly then resumed wiping his ARM, hoping she would take the hint and leave. If all she wanted was an opinion, she could have gone to Princess Snow or Pano.

"Thanks, Alviss!" she pulled him into a tight hug, something he had not been expecting, and nearly choked him to death with the embrace. Only after his face turned red and he started making sputtering noises did she release him. Alviss glared at her and rubbed his abused throat, trying to will her away.

"Only, I don't know exactly what it does. I want to show Ginta what it can do before I give it to him. And it won't work for me," she pouted at the last bit and sent the ARM a dirty look. "I was hoping, maybe, you could try it out for me? With your skill, you should be able to find out what it's capable of without a problem." she purred and batted her eyelashes at him. Alviss stared at her for a long moment before shrugging in defeat and holding out his hand for the ARM.

"I'll do it, just this once." he told her, doing his best to ignore her squeal of delight as she fixed the ARM around his wrist.

Immediately, he felt the magic sealed within the little bracelet envelope him, dulling his senses until he felt like he was floating in a dark sea. He felt his muscles relax involuntarily as the magic flowed into his body in a warm flood. "_This must be a calming ARM. You can't help but feel at ease when wearing it. Seems to be self-activated too._" he thought, smiling slightly.

It was only when he returned to his senses and found Dorothy staring at him with a horrified look that he thought, maybe, something was wrong.

"Dorothy?" He looked straight at the witch who was still sitting beside him on his bed, her jaw practically touching the floor. Alviss scratched his head and stood, aiming to straighten his clothes. He figured they must have somehow gotten wrinkled and tucked in places when he had blacked out, because they fit weird and were altogether too tight.

His hands ran down the front of his shirt and found two obnoxious bumps.

Alviss inhaled sharply and looked down, barely able to contain himself from screaming at the top of his lungs. What he thought had been bumps were actually miniature mountains hanging off of his chest, large enough for him to be unable to see his own feet.

"Dorothy, what—" Alviss sputtered, clutching at his throat when he realized his voice sounded higher than normal. Had the witch given him something while he was passed out, that made his voice high and odd lumps grow on his body? Now that he thought about it, his ass felt larger, to the point where the fabric of his pants was stretched painfully tight.

The witch still seemed frozen in shock, and only came to herself when Alviss squeezed the mounds on his chest and winced at the sensation.

"You... You're a... ha. Haha. Hahahaha!" Dorothy rocked back on the bed and clutched her sides, laughing hysterically as Alviss steadily felt the anger building within him.

"What's so damn funny? What did you do to me?" he demanded and attempted to cross his arms over his chest, but seeing as how they were obstructed, decided to keep them intimidatingly pressed against his now-curvy sides.

"Wuh... Wasn't me." she wheezed and leaned against the wall for support. "You... heh... you zonked out when I fastened the clasp, and then you... you... haha!" She fell into another fit, this time sliding off the bed and landing with a soft _thump_ on the stone floor.

Alviss felt his face becoming hot and realized he was blushing—something he hadn't done since before the war with the Chess. He grumbled under his breath and stalked over to the witch, crouching down and grasping her roughly by her collar.

"Why do I... Why am I a _girl_?" he hissed, and the severity of his tone was enough to sober the giddy witch. She wiped a few stray tears from her eyes and smiled up at him.

"It must be the ARM. I think it's a Seduction ARM, if the size of your chest indicates anything," she paused and clamped a hand over her mouth to prevent herself from giggling again. Alviss bit his lip and waited patiently for her to calm down. "A-Anyway, I don't think Ginta would like it, now that I know what it does. I mean, I'm already so irresistible; that's why it didn't work on me." she explained, seeming to speak more to herself than at Alviss, "Still, it's a pretty bracelet. I think I'll keep it."

"Please do." Alviss muttered sourly and let her go, so she could take the ARM off.

She thumbed at the ARM's clasp, her eyebrows scrunching closer and closer when she realized it wasn't responding.

"Dorothy..." Alviss's voice was a low growl as he bored a hole into the increasingly flustered witch. The pinkette glanced up at him and gave him a shaky smile before activating her Ring Dagger ARM and began sawing at the metal. Alviss stayed as still as possible, not caring in the least if the ARM was damaged in the process.

But after five minutes, the only ARM that showed any damage was Dorothy's. She whimpered softly at the various chips in her prized ARM. She returned it to its original state and stared thoughtfully at the bracelet on Alviss's wrist.

"You know, Alviss, that ARM looks a lot better on you than it ever did on me. Out of the kindness of my heart, I'm gonna let you keep it." Dorothy stood quickly and backed toward the door, ignoring the sounds of protest the young boy—now made a girl—was making as he tried to find the right words to express his anger. "No need to thank me. The fact that you won't take it off is proof enough." she added, then turned around and bolted out of his room.

Alviss groaned and sank to the floor. He laid down and stared up at the high gray ceiling of his room, all the while fiddling with the clasp, hoping that Dorothy had somehow been trying to open it the wrong way. But nothing he could do could get it off of him. He even tried using his own Ring Dagger and 13 Totem Pole Rod to entice it to come off, but the ARM refused to budge. It just sparkled in the bright light let in through the window, and Alviss had a suspicion that it was mocking him.

"Fine. If that's how you want it." He stood and fixed his clothing as best he could, hoping it didn't look too strange on him. He headed for his door, taking each step slow and carefully, so as not to make a sudden move and cause a tear in the fabric. He made his way down the many hallways and stairs in Lestava castle, ignoring the odd looks castle-goers gave him as he passed. Some would find him hauntingly familiar, and others simply enjoyed his new look.

But he made it, thankfully, to the large mess hall, where he knew Team MAR would be eating their breakfast. Alviss pushed hard against the large doors, cursing the added fat and lack of muscle his body was now proportioned with. They eventually gave, and he stumbled into the huge room, trying not to blush for the second time in an hour as his teammates stopped what they were doing and stared at him.

Alviss stayed rooted to the spot, caught somewhere between morbid fear and utter embarrassment. He rubbed the back of his head (trying not to flinch when he noticed his hair had become both longer and softer) and said the first thing that came to mind.

"Um... Morning, guys. What's for breakfast?"


End file.
